Healing hands

Today we returned to the new village to host their first ever Sunday School.  At first a few adults trickled into the brick and tin building, soon the whole floor flooded with children.  Heaven will resemble this church.   Everyone danced, sang, knelt, shouted, aye yi yied in praise to their maker.  The children stomped and shook out the door to a spreading tree where we held their program.  Yes the program moved the children and myself, but I want to touch on two things. 

The little girl in the picture claimed my left hand the first time we visited the village.  At the time she burned with fever.  Everyone was warm- it’s un-air conditioned Africa.  It almost hurt to hold her hand, the fever was so high.  Several times throughout that first night she collapsed, and I knelt to keep ahold of her hand.   That entire program I begged God to remove the fever.  After the program, I lost her in a crush of bodies, unable to discuss getting her medicine.  Today she skipped up to me, cool as a spring day, and happily re-claimed my left hand.  God took care of her without medicine.  Thank Him for his attention to the least of these children.  

Secondly, after visiting the craft market yesterday Janna and I found a pharmacy.  Here we spent the rest of our money on supplies for treating jigger wounds.  The crater I described from the village was a jigger wound.  Technically these are chigoe fleas that bore into the flesh from animal feces.  Then they lay eggs and eat further into the flesh.  Eventually they can consume entire limbs so that all a person has is a skin sack full of jiggers for a foot. Today I saw one girl with a similar hole in her ankle.  After the program we had a few minutes, so I pulled her aside and treated her with proper materials (no more germ-x!).  All of the children mobbed us, so curious to see what the mzungo would do.  After she was cleaned a grandmother tugged my sleeve saying, "Auntie Tabitha!" and handing me a little boy.  Then another girl followed... So much need.  Janna participated in the program at the original village and had a very similar experience.  The hidden wounds brought to light at a promise of healing.  Ultimately we can do very little.  Please pray to the all-powerful God to kill the jiggers in these children and heal the wounds they leave.  Also pray that through our treatment they see God's love for them.

To God be the glory forever and ever!
Amen